Now that 2019 has arrived, and it’s the second day of a brand new year, what better time than to start thinking about your finances and saving money this year! The festivities and holiday season are finished, and it’s back to work and reality. This might not sound like much fun, but thinking about your finances is necessary if you’d like to have more money in your savings pot throughout 2019.

Dealing with your finances can often be overwhelming and stressful as it’s hard to know where to begin. However, we are here to help! We believe that the best place to start is to think about where you are now (financially), where you want to be this time next time year and then think about what you need to do to get there.

January is the perfect time for a fresh start when it comes to how you deal with your money – so we’ve put together some ideas to get you on the right track to saving more in 2019…

Stick to a budget – create a realistic budget at the start of each month that you’ll be able to stick to. Adding in how much you’d like to save each month will be really helpful. You can then create a budget for the week ahead each Sunday afternoon. This is a great way to help stop any overspending, especially if you put the amount you’ve chosen to save each month away first of all.

Set up auto saving payments – if you set up monthly payments from your regular account to your savings account, you won’t have to think about saving each month and your cash pile will just keep growing. Start off with a small amount until you know for sure the amount you’re able to save and then increase the amount as and when you can.

Set up auto bill payments – this will help you avoid late fees and higher interest rates. Get this sorted out in January and you’ll be saving money throughout the rest of the year.

Use cash to pay – try using cash when purchasing things rather than using your credit or debit card. Tangible money often makes you spend less as you can see it there in front of you.

Write shopping lists – when it comes to grocery shopping, always make a list before you go and stick to it. It’s easy to buy things you don’t need but if you have a list to stick to you’re more likely not to overspend.

Use comparison sites – products are often cheap at different stores so make sure you use comparison sites and shop around before buying. This is especially important when it comes to saving money on your energy bills – use the comparison sites to find the cheapest provider.

These things are easy to do; it’s implementing them and sticking to them that’s the hard bit! But if you do, you’ll reap the money saving benefits in the long run and you’ll be closer to where you want to be financially.

Happy New Year!